a b s t r a c t
1-Butene, abundant but inexpensive in industry, can be used to produce more valuable propene and
ethene through the well-known metathesis reaction. In terms of catalyst system of molybdena, controlling
the interaction between the molybdena and the support is quite crucial. A special support, i.e.,
well-shaped one-dimensional -Al2O3 with uniform diameters of
∼10 nm and lengths of
∼100 nm, has
been synthesized via oleylamine-assisted hydrothermal method. The molybdenum oxides are well controlled
in sizes of moderate aggregation suitable for 1-butene metathesis with a fairly high rate of propene
production (38.9
×
10−9 mol m−2 s−1, 30 mol% yield in a single pass) under mild conditions. The status of
MoOx species in the catalyst has been investigated by solid state 29Si MAS NMR, Raman, UV–vis, H2-TPR
and NH3-TPD techniques. The catalyst, highly stable after twelve times of regeneration, is important for
practical utilization for the metathesis reactions.